Sleepless Nights
by Melanie Rose
Summary: Her striking blue eyes. Her all-too-knowing gaze. The way she always had lavendar laced in her hair. The way she'd never take the cross necklace that hung around her neck off. He had never really noticed her, until that one night in the clearing. ZeroxOC
1. Put Yourself In Her Position

A/N- This is my first Vampire Knight fic, but I'm not 100% sure whether I will continue this or not, so please review telling me what you think!

Disclaimer - Zero, Yori, Yuuki, Kaname and Cross Academy do not belong to me, however Izumi and the plot do.

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The moon hung in the sky, serving as the only light source amidst the darkness, it illuminated the ghostly forest around her, making the shadows seem almost menacing, in a way that couldn't help but send shivers up her the spine. The moon's unnaturally bright tonight, the girl thought, pinning the freed strands of her scarlet hair back in to the bun. But it was hopeless; her hair was a tangled mess.

The wind whipped suddenly around her causing her newly constructed bun to fall to pieces, the ends of her dress to flare up in protest and stole away the circle the girl had just created. She sighed; the spirits obviously didn't want her doing this tonight, though that only made it of further importance that she complete this tonight.

She bent down and scrapped up her rucksack, rummaging for a pack of matches, though her violent blue eyes didn't waver from the moon. The clouds were already beginning to block it, she needed to do this, and fast.

She struck the match and held it to her eyes for only a second, allowing herself to soak in the magnificent light it created, and the beautiful dancing flame, from the darkness it almost looked like it was floating – or even flying. It was precisely things like this that made her think the world was beautiful, and reminded her exactly why she was doing this.

White, Black, Green, Blue...she danced around her newly re-created circle, lighting each candle into a flickering fire, it almost made the shapes and shadows in the darkness disappear – except one, that is.

The shadow took a step towards her, though it remained hidden in the darkness. From the silhouette the girl could tell that it was a boy.

"Rain, Izumi." He said, it came out almost as a growl. Izumi flinched, causing the alit match to slip through her fingers, and fall to the floor. The second it touched the floor all the light that it once held vanished, she took a step back.

The boy remained in the shadows; his head tilted downwards, his hands shoved in the pockets of his uniform. Izumi looked on in puzzlement, trying to figure out the boy's identity – there was an air about him that Izumi knew very well, which only further compelled her to finish the circle. But she couldn't, not with a stranger to bare witness.

Another gust of wind whipped around them, this time strong enough that it almost swept Izumi off her feet and blew out the candles with an aggression which was not natural. And that's when she knew, she definitely wasn't supposed to be out here, the spirits here were far too strong and if she wasn't careful, they would grow to be angry, too. Her eyes immediately darted up to the moon – it had been completely embellished in clouds. She needed to get out of here, it must be completed another night.

Mere seconds passed by, Izumi felt rooted to the spot, her eyes wide with fright. What of the boy? Is he human, or a spirit? She couldn't tell which, but she prayed and prayed he was human but the feeling in her gut told her that he was neither – how could that be?

"Rain-san, you're not supposed to be out here. Let me take you back to your dorm." The boy said, taking a step into the clearing, though Izumi could barely make out his features.

"Izumi? Come with me now please, it's not safe out here." She felt something stroke her neck, something she knew wasn't human, but she had already known he was right.

There was a flick and suddenly the whole clearing was lit up, she could now see the boy's face. He took another step towards her, a large black torch in his right hand. For a moment Izumi didn't recognise him, but then she caught his lavender eyes. Kiryuu Zero, one of Cross Academy's guardians along with Sayori. People tended to avoid him. Standing here, in this unsettling clearing she could see why.

"Oh, sorry. " Izumi spluttered, lost for words – how could she explain this to him? "Just give me a moment to collect, my, um, stuff."

He only nodded in return, and then thrust the torch her way with such a force that caused Izumi to drop it. She bent to the floor to pick it up, she felt mud cover her knees but instantly forgot that when the torch illuminated another shadow.

Izumi looked behind her to check it wasn't Zero, but he was still there, though she couldn't see his face she could tell by his body language that his eyes were wide with shock too, she bit her lip, praying it wasn't a spirit.

She heard the quenching of leaves and instantly knew that Zero had come up behind her, something was wrong.

"Kuran Kaname." Zero growled, positioning himself just in front of her. Izumi quickly shoved the candles into her bag and struggled to stand up, her legs felt like they were about to collapse.

Izumi reached now again for the touch, desperate to see past the silhouette of the boy, no – man. She picked it up and directly shone it in the man's eyes. His white uniform told her that he was one of the night class students. His maroon eyes instantly lit up in shock, his charcoal hair swayed in the wind, he looked frightening on such a night. He let out a gasp and shoved his arm in front of his face to block the light, Izumi knitted her eyebrows, the light wasn't all that bright. However she pulled the light down and muttered an apology.

Kaname ignored it. "Kiryuu, what business do you have in the woods at this time of night?" He said in a polite manor that caused Zero's entire body to tense up, but not in fear. His gaze swept to Izumi, sending a warm shiver up her spine. "And with a beautiful young girl like this. I hope you weren't-"

"No. We weren't." He said through clenched teeth. "I was just about to escort back to her dorm, I found her out here-" My eyes couldn't help but widen, I prayed that he wouldn't expose me. "-drawing, I suppose she must have lost track of the time. However, I don't owe you an explanation so I'm going to take Izumi-san back to her dorm, good night."

Zero grabbed hold of her arm which such a force that Izumi couldn't help but gasp and pulled her out the clearing, passing Karname whose hands had now balled up into fists.

"I have no reason to keep you alive anymore, Kiryuu." Was all he said before, he too left the clearing. Izumi felt a chill run up her spine; he had to be joking –hadn't he?

They walked in silence, an awkward silence which bothered Izumi very much so, she wanted to do nothing more than break the silence between them, but from way Zero's lips were set violently together, she could tell he was in no position to talk.

The ghastly trees were long behind them, and she hoped the spirits were as well, so she could at least sleep in peace tonight. It should have been completed tonight, but with Zero-kun and Kaname-sempai being present she had been unable to. She didn't even want to think of the unnerving strength of the spirits tonight – being able to cover the moon like that defiantly wasn't normal. She'd have to put salt on her windowsill tonight.

Izumi couldn't help but fall back slightly – Zero's pace was unbelievably fast and she struggled to keep up with him. He noticed her shallow breaths and placed his hand in hers, a gesture which sent her heat beating a pace that she wondered why it hadn't whirl-winded out of her chest yet.

He dragged her up, along the path to the sun dorms, the vast towers looming over her, reminding Izumi of something like a fairytale. Cross Academy had always been like a dream to her – it had never seemed quite real.

Zero halted abruptly before the sun dorms so immediately that Izumi toppled forward, she used a brick wall to steady herself, Zero didn't even bother to help.

She understood, this was as far as Zero and her would go together, but she didn't want that, she didn't want to walk down the cold, empty halls alone – not tonight.

"Will you walk me to my dorm room, please?" She mutters, praying he doesn't say no. She shouldn't be out on her own, not with the spirits as strong as they are tonight.

He doesn't say anything but merely nods, and indicates for her to lead the way.

"Thanks Kiryuu-chan."

Izumi watches on in wonder as his eyes flutter, wide with shock, but in a mere second it's gone. She sighed and begins to walk to her dorm.

Again, they walked in silence, however this time it isn't awkward neither of them feel the need to fill it, there was just something off about the dimly lit hallway that compelled them to silence. Izumi knew that the spirits were beginning to close in on the school grounds, but what was compelling them to do so?

Zero could feel it to, he felt the chills run down his spine, he saw Izumi shiver and wrap her arms around herself, he thought about giving her his jacket, but he knew she wasn't shivering from the cold. He had understood why she had wanted him to accompany her to her room. The same aura that had been looming in the forest was now here, and he knew that most certainly wasn't a good thing.

Then he realised. He had never questioned what she had been doing in the forest in the first place, what of the candles? What had she been doing? He didn't even understand why he felt the need to cover for her in front of Kuran, was there even something to cover for?

Izumi could tell that Zero felt it too, but normal people couldn't feel things like except for the few like her, and she highly doubted he was one of them otherwise he would have addressed her by now. Unless, that was why he was guardian? Why did Cross Academy even need guardians in the first place, unless they knew. And she highly doubted that.

There must be another reason, she could tell Cross Academy held an extraordinary secret, everyone could, but nobody had dared question it, or delved deeper into it. What was Cross Academy hiding?

They turned the corner and suddenly the negative energy was gone, it must have been the salt she had lined her room with earlier.

She knew Zero had felt it too, for he had suddenly become relaxed. Why hadn't he questioned what she had been doing in the forest, he must have known it was something that needed to be covered – otherwise why would he have done so?

She stopped in midstride and whirled to face him.

"Why haven't you asked what I was doing in forest?" She spoke in tone that wasn't loud, nor quiet.

His hand went to the intricate tattoo lacing his neck, something flashed across his eyes, but disappeared before Izumi could figure out exactly what it was.

"It's none of my business." Was all he said.

She pressed a finger to her lips. "But surely you are at least curious."

"I know the door you're standing in front of is your room, I have done my job. Goodnight Izumi." He muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets and beginning to walk away.

"How did you know that was my room?"

He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face her, however his gaze remained glued to the floor. She felt the hurt break his mask and glide to his features.

"Because that used to be Yuuki's room."

And with that he walked away at an inhumanly pace, and rounded the corner, leaving Izumi stood there in the empty corridor, shock present in her eyes.

Somehow she wished she were back in the forest, with the shadows, rather than being here.


	2. Still Staring At The Ceiling

A/N - Thankyou to everyone for reading this and for favouriting/alerting/reviewing,

I would love some feedback, so don't hesitate to review.

Disclaimer - Only Izumi and the plot belong to me...unfortuantly.

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Izumi closed the door slowly behind her and leaned her head against it. Who was Yuuki? The name sounded oddly familiar to Izumi, and from the way Zero said her name, she could tell this girl meant something to him. Night Class, that's where she was from, she's the only person to have ever moved from Day Class to Night. And from the way Kaname spoke to him, and the way he responded I could tell he wasn't so keen on the Night Class.

But why? The Night Class had never done anything wrong that Izumi knew of, but even she had to admit that there was something off about them, they didn't seem quite the same as the Day Class students. How did you even become a Night Class student?

She sighed and allowed her legs to collapse, sliding her body to the floor. She pulled her knees to her chest and began silently rocking. What was wrong with her tonight?

Izumi brought her hand to her selenite necklace; she instantly felt a rush of calm run through her body. She never took it off, selenite was said provide protection and her mother had given it to her as a gift for her 6th birthday, she had barely taken it off since for it was the one of the only things she had to remind her of her mother.

With the thought of her mother still present in her mind, Izumi got up and walked over to the bathroom she shared with her roommate, Yori. However, Yori was still out patrolling and at night Izumi couldn't help but feel slightly alone.

She wandered over to bathroom to get changed out of her dress, but stopped when she caught her reflection. All the lavender in her hair had completely vanished and replaced by various twigs and muddy leaves, her hair no longer had it's familiar sheen, instead it looked limp and damp and lifeless. Izumi let out a gasp. The usual piercing blue tone in her eyes had faded and had been replaced by dull, dark blue. Splatters of mud were painted around her face, she didn't remember falling - she didn't even remember getting mud on her hands. And if she had looked this bad, then surely Zero would have said something?

Izumi took one look at her dress and sighed; she'd chosen it as a token of respect since today was the anniversary of her parent's death. It was once silky and white with an intricate flower design lacing the hem. Now it was splattered in mud and – a muddy handprint? A shiver passed over her. But it wasn't a human handprint, the fingers were sharp and pointed, she could tell by the nail prints just above it that the creature's hand had been curled in aggression. She stifled a scream.

It a matter of moments she thrust the dress off, hoping that whatever it was hadn't lodged onto the dress. Her mother's dress. She'd have to wash it first thing in the morning.

All of a sudden the door of the bathroom flew open, slamming against the wall, causing the shelves the rock to and fro. Izumi jumped back in shock, praying with every last shred of hope that it wasn't a spirit. But how could a spirit get past the protection circle I had created?

But it wasn't a spirit. Kiryuu Zero was stood in the entrance, his silvery hair glittering in the artificial light. Izumi let out a gasp when she saw he was holding a Bloody Rose – a weapon used to harm spirits but was unable to hurt humans. How did he have one?

She caught her expression in the mirror which completely covered the left side of the bathroom and realised she was stood there in her bra and underwear, her hair a tangled mess, her hands and knees covered in dirt – with Kiryuu Zero standing merely a metre away from her. Colour drifted to her face as she reached for her lavender robe and wrapped it around her.

"Are you ok Izumi? What happened to you?" He said, colour drifting to his face when he realised he had caught her in her underwear. However, Izumi didn't reply she merely stared at him, her eyes wild.

She took one small step towards him, her arms crossed. "Where on earth did you get _that_?" Izumi almost shouted, her hand shuck rapidly as she gestured to the Bloody Rose.

"Izumi, I heard a scream. What happened?" Zero asked, returning the Bloody Rose to the pocket in his jacket. He took another step towards her; he was now inches away from Izumi. She bit her lip as she felt his breath pierce her skin. "What happened, Izumi?"

She didn't realise she had screamed out loud. "I don't know, I just walked into the bathroom and-" Izumi was lost for words; she couldn't tell him about the handprint on her dress – could she?

He placed a hand on her shoulder, and moved in closer, something which Izumi knew was a very odd thing for Zero to do. "Rain-san?"

"I don't know, okay? Can we please just forget this happened?" She muttered, looking down to avoid Zero's gaze. She grabbed hold of his hand and pushed it off her shoulder and took a step away from him. She still didn't look up.

"Whatever Izumi, I tried to help. I can do nothing more." The warm tone had left his voice and replaced by a much harsher one, harsh for even Zero. He sighed, and began to leave.

Izumi was taken aback by his tone but managed to say, "You didn't answer my question."

He span around to face her, a glare was plastered to his face, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "What question?"

Her eyes narrowed. "The question you're quite obviously avoiding. Otherwise you wouldn't be playing– and _failing_ at that- dumb."

Zero didn't take his eyes off her. "I'm not obliged to answer that, therefore I won't. Goodnight Rain-san."

Izumi sighed as she tried to run after him, not caring when her rove slipped from her shoulders, leaving her in merely her underwear. She ran down the hallway, calling after him – not caring who she woke up in the process. She shoved the large door open which was the entrance to the Sun Dorms open with all her might. And when she felt her feet collide with stony path; Zero was long gone.

A chill passed through her and she realised she had been shaking. She wasn't going find Zero tonight, she couldn't even if she wanted to, for the spirits were far too strong tonight -and from the look of the handprint on her mother's dress- were closing in on the campus, too.

Though she remained out in the cold for just a second, taking in the stars that lined the sky tonight, she smiled to herself and headed back inside, with thoughts of Zero clouding up her mind.

As soon as she arrived in her bedroom, Izumi realised she was still coated in mud and dirt and twigs so she decided to take a shower, it hope that it might relax her too.

However it didn't. The water was ice cold even though it was turned up to full heat, she could tell from the redness of her skin and the condensation tattooing the shower that it was actually steaming hot, but she couldn't seem to feel it, or anything for that matter. Not that she particularly wanted to in the first place though. To love is to kill. Izumi had always thought and she strongly believed that.

Which is why she distanced herself from virtually everyone, she had vowed to herself to never fall in love ever since she had struggled for months to deal with her parent's death and the pain she felt when they died was something she never wanted to feel again. Surely love wasn't worth _that_?


	3. For No Good Reason

A/N; thanks to everyone who read/favourited/alerted/reviewed this, thought I could some more feedback/ways I can improve33

Disclaimer, sadly i only own Izumi and the plot, not vampire knight, ;_;

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"Goodnight Aidou-chan, I'll miss you."

Izumi's eyes automatically fluttered open to the sound of her roommate, Sayori's voice. She was in her bed, under the red silk of her covers. However she didn't remember how she got there in the first place. A shiver ran up her spine. She was freezing; the window had been swung open. She could feel the breeze glide through the window and caress her cheek, play with her hair...

"Hush my love." Said another voice in a sweet, seductive tone. There was a pause, and then the clashing of lips drifted into her ears. She could practically taste the love that filled their kiss. "You may wake your roommate."

"No, Izumi could practically sleep through a hurricane if she wished so."

"Well, then let us hope there isn't a hurricane." Aidou muttered in reply, using the same tone he had used earlier. A floorboard creaked, leading Izumi to the implication that he had pulled her closer yet again.

Yori let out a soft chuckle.

"I wish I could tell her about us, she's one of my closest friends, you know." Izumi opened her eyes ever so slightly, but not enough that either of them would notice. She tried not to sigh as Yori's head fell into her hands. "I wish I could tell Yuuki, too."

"You know Yuuki-sama would not approve of our relationship." The seductive tone had left his voice and had been replaced by a tone of sadness. "And telling your roommate would require her to become aware of the Night Class's secret, which is something you know I am unable to do. Even though it pains me to say so."

Her ears prickled at the mention of the Night Class and their secret, she willed herself to be able to hear more clearly. At least it had confirmed one thing; the Night Class did have a secret, and an important one at that. The only questions remaining were how did the Night Class link to Zero Kiryuu and what was the actual secret? Even though she knew Aidou would not risk revealing the secret now, not with her presence, if she were asleep or not, but she wished he would do so.

Yori sighed. "You're right I guess. Though one day I hope I don't have to keep secrets from my friends anymore."

Aidou sighed, too. "Well when you're with my kind, you will always have to." Izumi heard him kiss her, though she didn't know where. "I must get going now, you need your rest."

"I wish you didn't."

"Me too, Sayori, me too." He said in an almost defeated tone, Izumi couldn't help feel a twinge of sympathy for him, even though she barely had a clue what they were talking about.

"I love you."

"I love you too, good night." He pulled Yori in for one last embrace and then the door was shut.

Izumi shut her eyes tightly as she heard Yori saunter over towards her, Yori had never been light on her feet.

"Oh Izumi-chan." Yori whispered, bending down over Izumi. She felt sick. At that moment in time she could have sworn that she'd been found out. "I do wish I could tell you everything, the Night Class's secret, about Aidou-kun and I," there was a short pause, Izumi felt her stomach knot in anticipation, "and about Zero-kun's secret. About everything, I wish I could tell you."

Izumi did, as well.

***

"Izumi Rain, I am sure you are aware of why you are here?" The Chairman asks, pushing up his glasses and leaning forward on the desk. They were in The Chairman's office, it was pleasant and cosy really, with the blaring fireplace and the windows that completely dominating the wall behind The Chairman's desk exposing the great architecture and gardens of Cross Academy. Even though on the surface it _seemed_ warm and inviting and beautiful, there was something far more sinister buried below that couldn't help but make Izumi feel ill at ease.

"I am, Chairman." She said and bowed with a false politeness that The Chairman didn't need to be aware of. It had been the 4th time she'd been called into his office this month, and they were only two weeks in. "I am sorry. Am I in trouble?"

"No, Rain-san you are not." He paused for a moment, before getting up swiftly and walking over to her until he was standing merely inches away from her. "Unless," he bent down to look her in the eyes, "you refuse to give me your word that you will not do such a thing again."

The Chairman wasn't usually like this, he was kind, gentle man – the kind of person you could talk to with the most pettiest thing and he wouldn't mind one bit, the kind of person who you could sit and cry with, and wouldn't tell you that you were being stupid, the kind of person who would make a perfect farther. He was never this serious, he was happy and bubbly and sometimes acted like a child himself, he would sometimes dance around the room; his long, golden hair nothing but a blur. He wasn't usually like this, Izumi must have pushed the line.

But she couldn't lie to him. "If I gave you my word, it would be a lie and I don't want to lie to you Chairman."

"Oh Izumi-chan!" He cried, and began to pout. Izumi couldn't help but smile. "I really, really, don't enjoy punishing my students, but this is one rule and that cannot and should not be broken. It's for your _safety_." He sighed, giving her biggest puppy-dog look he could master.

The door slammed shut. Both The Chairman and Izumi whirled around.

"Zeroooo-kun!" Chairman screamed, sounding unremarkably close to a fan girl. "Son! Come and give your father a biggg huggg!"

Zero merely folded his arms and replied; "You are not my father." Using his usual harsh tone, it was as if he was trying to push everyone away – and Izumi had seen someone do that before and she knew exactly why he was doing it.

"A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words." Izumi spoke in a small voice. "Maybe you shouldn't try and push everyone away, Zero Kiryuu because eventually you'll have no one left and then you'll fall into a very, very lonely world. Worse than the world you seem to be in now."

Zero shot her a glare the entire time she was speaking, _if looks could kill_ she thought to herself. Ignoring The Chairman's shouts telling her come back; she walked out the room and slammed the door shut. She'd dealt with more than enough Zero Kiryuus in the past and she was quite frankly fed up of them.

But beneath all the anger and harsh glares she knew there was a small boy, desperately crying out – not for help – but for a friend.

And then she thought about the world and all the sadness, broken hearts and despair that it was filled to the rim of, and how little all these problems seemed in the grand scheme of things. She thought about how insignificant they were in their galaxy, or in the universe all-together. She thought that if there was life on this planet, the surely, somewhere there would be life nesting somewhere else, _I hope they have a happy life, I hope their world isn't filled with all the sadness and broken hearts and despair...and people who are hopelessly broken..._people like Zero.

She could see through his facade, through his mask to the real Zero Kiryuu, to broken little boy consumed by his pain, it clouding up his world. In that moment, standing outside The Chairman's office she wished she could make it all go away, she wished for no more sadness in the world. But she was realist; she knew that would never happen.

She knew that she'd never get through to Zero-kun, she wished she could. Just like she wished for there to be no more secrets between the students of Cross Academy. But she was a realist; she knew that would never happen.

But she could damn well wish it with all her heart.

***

"Izumi Rain!" The small, wide-eyed student-host shouted, waving a yellow card to and fro above his mop of auburn hair. He had a small grin plastered to his face, he looked no more than 7, what was he doing at Cross Academy?

She looked to Yagari-sensi to see if he was going to accept it on her behalf, or force her to make a complete and utter embarrassment of herself by tripping down the stairs to get it. He opted for the second one.

Groaning, she slid out her seat and raced down the steps, never daring to take her head up the entire time, for fearing of taking her eyes off the steps and falling over, something she was prone to and did almost every other day.

The end of the stairs approaching, she decided to take a chance and take her eyes off the stairs – for she couldn't possibly fall over – she only had a few more steps to go, after all. She regretted that idea instantly when on the _very last_ step she toppled over and fell – flat on her face. She could feel the embarrassment radiating from her reddened cheeks. Izumi looked up to her classmates, every last person was bursting with laughter – including Zero. However, when he felt her eyes drift to him, his features twisted into that deathly glare of his.

She turned her back to the students and sauntered over to the young boy, he too, was laughing as he handed her the yellow slip, his hands shaking because he was laughing so hard.

He was barely able to call Zero's name as she headed back to her seat.

"What is it Izumi-chan?" Asked Yori, leaning over to get a better look at the slip. She'd stopped laughing now.

_**Rain, Izumi.**_

_**Please report to Chairman Cross's office at precisely 4:40pm for detention, lasting for a total duration of two hours.**_

_**If you do not attend, this will result in a letter, or phone call home.**_

I rolled my eyes. "Detention, crap." Yori let out a gasp.

"What did you do?"

"I was outside afterhours. Again." I sighed, knowing she'd launch into a full throttle lecture, but she didn't know why I _needed_ to be outside at night, she didn't know what I'd been trying to complete for the past few weeks and how important it was.

"Izumi, you know it's seriously dangerous to be out at night."

"No, actually, I don't. Why is it?" Izumi couldn't help but feel a little guilt for putting poor Yori-chan on the spot like that, but it had to be done.

Colour rushed to her face. "Um, because people could, like, sneak over the walls or something-"

"But, why would they do that? Cross Academy is in the middle of nowhere after all. What intentions would anyone have for breaking in and trying to harm it's students?"

Yori-chan looked down and bit her lip. "Um-"

"Rain!" Barked a cruel voice, Izumi turned around, following the voice. It was Zero, leaning over his desk, shooting daggers her way, each of them filled with hate. She couldn't help but notice that he had an almost identical yellow slip crumpled up in one of his hands. "Leave Yori-chan alone, it's none of your business why the school rules are the way they are. You broke a school rule. Several times. Accept the consequences of your foolish actions and shut up."

That was it, whether he was in pain or not, Izumi had had enough of Zero and his horrible attitude.

"Bite me."

He was fuming before, but the look on his face now was filled with pure anger, he looked at her like she were the most disgusting thing he'd ever laid his pretty lavender eyes on.

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Review for the awesome YorixAidou! :3


	4. Recognition

A/N: Thanks to everyone who's reviewed/favourited/read/alerted this story, I'm sorry that this took so long to get out; I've been extremely busy with school and such.

I don't own Vampire Knight, I only own Izumi and the plot.

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The rain thrashed against the window, the sound was so loud that it drowned out Yori's voice. Izumi sighed and continued staring out of the window, squinting in hope to see the grounds of Cross Academy, but all she saw was a blurred mass of grey. It was raining so hard that Izumi wondered why it hadn't smashed through the window yet.

Izumi had never been fond of the rain, she'd hated the way it would thrash against her skin, the way it'd run down her arms and drip from her newly soaking wet hair, and she hated the feeling of it on her skin, how she could so easily relate it to her own feelings; drowning, sinking, loneliness. She wrinkled her nose in disgust.

She could hear that had now begun to Sayori shout, but Izumi couldn't make out what she was saying, nor did she have inclination to hear it, so it didn't really matter anyway.

Forgetting what she saw when she closed her eyes, she let her heavy eyelids close for a just a brief moment. However, it was a moment too long. She tried to open then in time, but as she did every time when she forgot, it was too late. The image was already plastered in her head, and even though immediately after she'd opened her eyes, she could still see it as if her eyes were still slammed shut. She left out a soft gasp.

She just couldn't get that one retching image out of her head, it haunted her every time she closed her eyes, it was almost as if it was imprinted in her mind. No matter what she did it refused to leave, it would keep her awake for nights and nights on end, causing her to suffer numerous sleepless nights. As if she needed another reason to be kept awake at night.

"DAMNIT IZUMI I AM REALLY BEGINNING TO TIRE OF YOUR WAYS. YOU NEVER LISTEN TO ME!" Yori shouted so loud that even with her fingers stuck in her eyes, Izumi could hear. But she didn't really mind, her and Yori had been fighting for so long now, almost too long. It was always the same argument and it was beginning to get so monotonous that Izumi didn't even bother argue back anymore.

However, she did manage to mutter a tired; "Likewise, Yori." She brought her hands up to her forehead and began to slowly rub her temples.

"IZUMI!" She couldn't help but let her head shoot up. Yori-chan was stood 3 feet away from her, her hands folded so tightly that it was astonishing that her bones hadn't snapped yet. Her lips were set in a straight line and her eyes were nothing more than mere slits; she'd never seen Yori like this, every part of her body was pulsing with anger. Yori wasn't like this. She was happy and bubbly and-

Yori folded her arms in the uttermost annoyance a person could possibly reach; she was still dressed in her uniform, however she had yet to put on her prefect armband. In a matter of a few very long and silent moments her expression cooled, and she took a step towards Izumi, the sound of her footstep echoing off the walls.

"Please, Izumi. I'm only saying this for your own good." Izumi could tell that Yori was clearly desperate for her not to go out at night anymore, for she said the words in a begging tone with was almost never present on her lips and her eyes had become large and rounded, she could tell that Yori was attempting her puppy dog eyes, which she knew clearly never worked on Izumi.

Izumi merely shook her head, unable to say anything back for the fear that she might give in.

Yori took another small step towards her, and another one and another; it was almost as if she were trying to sneak up Izumi without her noticing. Eventually she had reached the foot of Izumi's bed; she paused for a moment and perched on the end of it.

"At least tell me why you're doing this." Izumi was astonished she had even said anything, for her mouth had barely moved.

Before she could bite back the sour words, she muttered; "I'll tell you my secrets, when you tell me yours." And within moments of whispering those 10 words, Izumi immediately regretted ever opening her mouth in the first place.

Eyes masked with shock, Yori let out a small gasp and shook her head as to be dismissive of Izumi's assumption and got up, off her bed. Maybe Yori wasn't really linked with the Night Class. Maybe Yori didn't-

Her eyes caught something strange and out of place in Yori's usual attire, a thick ivory bandage circling her neck.

She took a single step towards Yori-chan, her hand outstretched.

"Izumi, what-"

"Yori, just be quiet for a moment, please." Shock glided to Izumi's features as she realised it came out much sweeter than she had originally intended, but it worked, Yori took a deep breath and exhaled, as if to blow all the negative energy from her body and mimed locking up her mouth and throwing away the key.

"What happened, Yori-chan?" Izumi whispered, her outstretched hand reaching for the bandage.

At an inhumanly speed Yori's hand immediately clamped on her neck, covering the right side of the bandage, but oddly –Izumi couldn't help but notice- was not where the drawing pin holding the bandage itself together rested.

"None of your business, Izumi." Yori spat, her eyes practically glowering and with that, she turned on her heel and headed out the door, slamming it in the process.

Taken aback, Izumi crawled into bed, not caring that it wasn't even dark outside yet and that she was still fully clothed, it wasn't as if she was going to sleep or anything. She closed her eyes, praying that she wouldn't see that image again, but like every day since she had caught that expression on his face she had. And like every other time she'd closed her eyes, she saw his face.

His tangled silvery hair splashing all over his face, his pretty lavender eyes gazing right into hers...through narrowed slits. The ends of his soft lips curved into almost a snarl, the hatred lining his gaze, the way his hands were balled so tight into fists that Izumi found it astonishing that they had failed to puncture his inhumanly pale skin, the way he was practically shaking with anger.

Looking back she didn't understand what she had said was so wrong, it wasn't even all that offensive and it wasn't like Zero Kiryuu to take such things to heart.

Unless she had struck a chord buried deep down inside of him, one so precious and weak and so easily broken that had caused him to act like that. But what chord could she possibly have struck? Maybe he'd been bitten by a dog at a, um, young age and been haunted by that moment ever since? But then again, she'd been bitten by many dogs as a child and it didn't scare all that much that she was overly sensitive about the entire experience.

_But what if it was the other way around? What if he was the one doing the "biting"? _A chilling voice whispered, causing a shiver to cascade down Izumi's spine.

_No, no...that couldn't be possible, such beings don't exist outside of fairytales._ She thought to herself in an ill-harboured attempt to calm herself down.

_Beings such as your kind exist out of fairytales_.

Oddly, sleep came easily to Izumi that night.


	5. And Nothing's Changed

**Author's Note; **I'm sorry for taking so long to update, my mind's been elsewhere. Here's a small (and badly written, I'm sorry) bit of Sleepless Nights for you, I will update with a longer soon.

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Stacks and stacks of books were scattered along every available crook and crease in the small, cramped room Izumi and Yori shared. To Izumi's luck Yori had disappeared the second a slither of light fought its way out of the night sky. However, Yori didn't forget to viciously slam the door to announce her departure.

It was strange, for Yori was never violet or aggressive, let alone held grudges or kept secrets. She was normally as easy to read as a book, and wore her emotions on her sleeve. But lately her emotions had been fading until Izumi had to squint to even gain a small slither of what Yori was feeling, and it was normally anger- towards her.

She missed the serene, smiling eyes of the Yori she'd first met, the one who had helped through her first terrifying weeks at Cross Academy, the one who hadn't laughed when she'd gotten lost accidentally walked into the boy's showers. Well, maybe she had a little. But that just made her miss that Yori even more.

Now she wasn't sure if that Yori even existed anymore, maybe this new, secretive and aggressive Yori had eaten her. It doesn't really matter, either way Izumi looked at it; she wasn't getting her new friend back.

However, she knew she shouldn't let her mind wander like that. She had to keep looking, she had to discover the Night Class's secret, it was the only reason she could think of for the spirits to act like this and to close in on the campus grounds. It was unnerving how strong they were away from the depths of the forest, how one of them managed to _touch_ her without her recollection. Izumi bit her lip, a feeble attempt to stifle a scream. She had to carry on looking.

So far her search had gotten her almost nowhere, there were many accounts that matched her search; fallen angels and succubus demons - but it none of it made sense, throughout her years of training, she'd be strictly told that these were merely fairy tales, that they didn't exist out of the human's imaginations. Angels cast out of Heaven made sense, there were legends that bad spirits were created by sexual relations between male fallen angels and female humans, but that did not explain the presence of the female members of the Night class and most certainly did not explain the need for Guardians. It appeared that even the higher ups in the academy were aware of the secret.

Succubus demons did not make sense in that retrospect either, if the higher ups of Cross Academy were corrupt, why would they employ Guardians to prevent the Night Class from preying on the students, and why wasn't there rumours floating around of vanished students?

Izumi was quickly beginning to tire of this, she was almost nearing the end of her book and her search was falling to shreds, until she turned the page and the title bore one word that made her heart almost stop-


	6. Another Stupid Fight

Author's Note; hey guys! I thought I'd update with another short chapter. I'm sorry it's so short, I'm just not sure whether I'm going continue this or not as it's getting to the point where I'm not enjoying writing this too much any more, but nothings set in stone as of yet.. It's been noted that some of the characters seem OOC, would you guys please kindly review and tell me what you think. I'm trying very hard to improve upon this.

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**VAMPIRE.**

_Beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence (commonly referred to as blood) of those of a human form, though they do not necessarily have to be fully human themselves, but must be at least partially human or the vampire's body will reject the blood as it is too foreign from their own. An exception to this that vampires many drink from pureblood vampires (the highest rank of vampire, their often contains no trace of human blood at all) as it is relatively similar to their own._

_Despite common folklore, many vampires can't travel in sunlight, however some may be more sensitive to it than others and some cannot…_

It was if a light had just been flicked on in her head, it made sense. It explained the bandage around Yori's neck and why she had acted so defensive when Izumi had moved to get a better look at it, it explained the need for there to be guardians and why the Night Class had class at Night and were separated from the humans – _so they wouldn't make a meal out of them._

But it didn't explain the spirits. So that couldn't possibly be the case. Izumi groaned and threw the nearest book at the door and accidentally knocked it open. _Stupid bloody books._

"Great." She mumbled, she would have to move to close the door and moving required _effort._

Locking her hands into fists, Izumi trudged across the wreckage, her hand reaching out for the door knob-

And was rapidly knocked off her feet.

"Izumi! What on earth have you done to our dorm room?" Yori was stood at the door, arms folded, eyes blazing. "I just came back to let you know that you slept in, _again_ and that your detention is in _20 minutes._"

"Brilliant, you're so generous Yori. Wow." She yawned.

"Stop being sarcastic with me, I came back to make sure you didn't get in more trouble than you already are. I can see that I was wrong to even bother." Sayori looked away, her eyes wandering to the fleeting sunlight outside. Right then, in that slither of a moment, Izumi saw a flicker of the Yori she had first met, the Yori she missed with all her heart.

This time when she spoke, it came out soft and almost as a whisper. "I miss you so much Yori-chan. It was like one day something snapped within you."

Yori didn't say anything, her eyes filled up with tears, but she didn't cry. She had her hands balled into fists so hard it was a miracle she wasn't bleeding and her hair had fallen in teardrops over her face. Even now, she was still trying to shield her emotions from Izumi.

"What happened Yori-chan, what happened?" Izumi took a step towards her. "Please, I just want to help you."

"I'm fine." Yori whispered, pulling her hands into a protective ball against the left side of her chest. It was as if she was trying to protect her heart. Her gaze drifted down onto the oaky floor that lined the room they shared.

Izumi didn't know what to do. She daren't make a movement in case she were to snap Yori-chan out of her momentary lapse back into her true self. She merely stood there, praying desperately that Yori might snap and open up to her.

But Yori didn't move, she looked as still as someone out of the Night Class.

She sighed and took a deep breath before whispering, "Please Yori-chan. I miss you. Please."

Her eyes were no longer filled with tears when she said; "I'm fine Izumi, now you better get to your detention." And without turning back, marched abruptly out of the room.

Izumi stood there what felt like hours, she had come so close to reaching beyond Yori's carefully built mask and yet she had blown it all within a matter of seconds.

Even though she'd almost got through to Yori, it hadn't changed anything; she was still no closer to fixing her friendship with Yori or any closer to discovering as to why the spirits were drifting closer and closer to the school. Yet the clock was ticking and she would eventually run out of time. As a matter of fact, she didn't know how much time she even had left. Izumi was sure that if were to let matters progress at the manner in which they were, she'd wouldn't be able to handle it on her own. People of her kind were few and far and her grandmother, who had been the one to send her to Cross Academy in the first place, was clutching to the few tendrils of life she had left.

Yes, she was most definitely very alone in this place.

And with that she made her way to detention, her head hung in shame.

"Why hello Rain-san, it's nice that you've finally decided to join us." Yagari muttered in his usual stern and husky voice.

"My apologies sir."

Izumi sighed, stepping into the head's office. There was only her and Zero in the room, who greeted her by fiercely glaring in her direction. She'd hoped that because it was the Chairman, her punishment wouldn't be too bad, but from the look on Yagari's face said that she definitely wasn't in for an easy time.

"If it were up to me, tonight I would be out in the town patroli-," he coughed midsentence, "-going to a bar. But because that stupid Chairman is away, he's asked me to oversee your detentions." Yagari paused, looking extremely bored. "Now since Zero is a prefect and by being in detention, he would miss out on his duties, the Chairman has requested that for this one night only that Izumi be taken out on patrol." Izumi watched as shock and anger flashed through Zero's eyes. Yagari, noticing his expression muttered, "Stupid old man." And tossed the letter that bore the Chairman's signature (and a badly drawn smiley face) to the floor. "Zero, it is your job to protect Izumi. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going."

"Wait!" Zero shouted, his eyebrows knitted together in irritation. Blocking his path to the door, Zero said, "You can't possibly suggest that I take _her_ out on patrol!"

Izumi, taken aback by the venom in which _he_ had said her name spluttered, "Her? Don't I even deserve a name? Just because-"

"I _can't_," Yagari cut in. "But Kaien idiotically did. He said that if Miss Rain insists on being out on the grounds every night, _then she might as well be doing something productive_. Now if you'll excuse me," Yagari said, pushing Zero out of the way, "I have more pressing matters to deal with. Plus, since the Night Class returned they have been less…_troublesome_. There is no immediate threat to worry about for now Zero."

"But-"

He sighed again, and left the room without forgetting to slam the door shut, leaving Izumi alone with _him_.

The silence lasted so long, it was almost unbearable; she could feel Zero's vicious eyes burning a huge, gaping hole into her back. It was as if she were vermin he'd spotted on the street.

"You are aware," he paused to grab hold of her shoulders and whirled her around to face him, "that under no circumstances are you patrolling with me tonight."


End file.
